[2] Vladislav Ardzinba was born in the village of Lower Eshera, Sukhumi District, Abkhaz ASSR, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union[citation needed].

After graduating from the Historical Department of the Sukhumi Pedagogical Institute, Ardzinba studied at the Tbilisi State University where he received a doctoral degree[citation needed].

[2] Ardzinba, who was a charismatic but excitable figure popular among the Abkhaz, was believed by Georgians to have helped to instigate the violence of July 1989.

In mid-1991, he negotiated and accepted the Georgian concession on the reform of the electoral law that granted the Abkhaz wide over-representation in the Supreme Soviet.

As the Georgian-Abkhaz tensions rose, Ardzinba's rhetoric mounted, as he claimed in late July 1992 that "Abkhazia is strong enough to fight Georgia.

"[5] In August 1992, a Georgian military force ousted Ardzinba and his group from Sukhumi when Abkhazian militants seized government buildings.

Ardzinba benefited from his contacts with the Russian hardliner circles and military leaders to garner critical support in the war against the Georgian government.

[6] After the hostilities ended in 1994 and the bulk of the Georgian population was forced out of Abkhazia, the Abkhazian parliament elected Ardzinba to the presidency, a move that was condemned by Georgia and the United Nations as illegal.

During the last years of his presidency Ardzinba faced criticism for both failing to bring stability to Abkhazia and his increasingly low public profile.